10 OF THE WORST “HEALTHY” FOODS TO YOU MUST AVOID NO MATTER WHAT!

One of the main reasons why people do not eat healthy is because many are confused about what is good to eat and what isn’t. In a global survey of more than 27,000 people, 26 percent reported that confusion about which foods are healthy was a major barrier to eating right. (Nielsen) Often times, food that are called healthy are not and labels can be misleading.

There is not a one size fit all diet plan everyone should follow, but there are some foods that many people consider to be healthy that are not. Of course, most people know to avoid processed foods that are full of synthetic chemicals.

Processed foods are easy to spot, but so called “health” foods are also a big problem. Take a look at these 10 healthy foods to avoid!

1. Gluten-Free Foods

Gluten-free sounds fantastic, but these products are normally packed full of high amounts of sugar, corn syrup, and alternative forms of starch. This is not good for the body. Also, many gluten-free foods have tested positive for gluten due to cross contamination. It is safest to go with a non-processed gluten free snack.

2. Supermarket Yogurt

Natural yogurt can be full of high-quality protein, beneficial probiotics, calcium, B vitamins, and even cancer-fighting conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). But this is not true of most yogurt sold in a store. High amounts of sugar, artificial flavors, and artificial colors outway the benefits of a serving of healthy yogurt.

3. Fruit Juice

Most commercially bought fruit juices contain too much fructose or sugar to be healthy. They also contain preservatives to help them last longer. Fruit is a better alternative because the fiber found in fruit slows down the body’s absorption of sugar. Also, a fruit smoothies made from fruit is also a good option.

4. Fish

Traditionally, fish has been a good source of animal-based omega-3 fats EPA and DHA. However, recent water pollution levels have made fish and other seafood unsafe to eat. Even fish from fish farms are nutritionally lacking. There is also GMO salmon to consider.

5. Veggie Chips

Do no let the name fool you. Most of the time, veggie chips are just potatoes with veggie flavoring or puree. The chips do not contain the vitamins found in vegetables and they can be fried. Just slice a veggie and eat that instead.

6. Soy

Soy is touted as a healthy vegetarian source of protein, but its phytoestrogens (or isoflavones) can mimic the effects of the female hormone estrogen. HIgher chances of breast cancer are link to excessive soy consumption. Also, GMO soy is incredibly unsafe.

7. Agave

Store bought agave is nothing more than a laboratory-generated super-condensed fructose syrup, devoid of virtually all nutrient value. Do not be fooled. Depending on how it’s processed, it may contain anywhere from 55 percent to 90 percent fructose. High-fructose corn syrup is also about 55 percent fructose so, even in the best case, agave syrup offers no advantage.

8. Reduced-Fat Peanut Butter

Peanut butter can contain a bunch of additives that are not good for the body. Reduced fat peanut butter takes away the good fat found in nuts. Also, reduced-fat peanut butter tends to have more sugar in it to add flavor.

9. Couscous

Couscous may seem healthy, but it is really just a smaller form of pasta. Try a whole grain couscous or quinoa instead.

10. Banana Chips

Banana chips are fried which strips them of most of their nutrients. These nutrients include fiber, potassium, vitamin C, and fewer calories and fat. An ounce of banana chips contain 150 calories while a medium banana only contains 105. Regular bananas are also easier to chew.

I recently read a “30 Tips” post on Rubies and Radishes that had some great suggestions to make eating Paleo easier.*

But… compulsive editor that I am, I edited it down to what I thought were the best tips for eating Paleo, and add a few helpful items and notes of my own. Here you go!

• When you’re just starting, plan out meals and snacks several days in advance. This keeps you from caving in on busy days. Once you get the hang of cooking and eating Paleo, it will be easier to throw together meals from your well-stocked kitchen.

• If planning all your meals seems overwhelming, try it in phases. Most people don’t need a lot of variety in breakfast, so find one or two Paleo-friendly breakfasts that work for you and get those nailed down. Then find a few lunches that work for you. Then move on to planning dinners.

• Cook meat in bulk; save in easy-to-thaw portions in the freezer. Hamburger, pulled pork, chicken, and your favorite kinds of sausage are all handy to have ready to deploy. You can also cook bacon in big batches and keep it in the fridge. Have you tried cooking it in the oven?

• Dedicate time to prep ingredients every week. Or, if it works better for you, every evening after dinner, prep what you’ll need for tomorrow’s meal(s). Thaw anything that’s frozen. Chop up ingredients. Pre-mix seasonings or sauces.

• Paleo eating and meal planning takes time to adjust to. Give yourself time and grace. Keep at it — it will get easier! It’s only hard until it’s routine.

• Read labels. Learn to recognize sugar in all its disguises. Yeah, it’s overwhelming and kind of depressing at first, but it’s a necessary education.

• Don’t spend too much time trying to figure out how to substitute or recreate the non-Paleo food you once ate. Instead of mourning the loss of food that makes you feel yucky, celebrate new food discoveries that make you feel great! As you stick with this, your taste buds will change and junk food will become less and less appealing.

• Explore Paleo blogs and books. The more Paleo knowledge you have, the easier it is to stick with your new lifestyle!

• When you make dinner, make extra. Enjoy it for breakfast (yes, you can!) or lunch the next day, or pack it in the freezer for an easy future meal.

• One of the hardest things about eating Paleo is the social pressure to eat junk. Always have a plan before going to social gatherings. And focus on how that food is going to make you feel tomorrow! Tell yourself, “When I eat crap, I feel like crap.”

• Eat a satisfying meal before you go to parties so you won’t be tempted by unhealthy choices. Drink plenty of water while you’re there. Focus on enjoying the people, not the food.

• If it’s a pot luck, bring your own Paleo dish (or two), because that might be your only healthy choice!

• Likewise, have a plan for how you’ll eat when meeting friends at restaurants.

• Remember to get the sleep you need every night, and drink plenty of water. And several times a week, if not every day, try to get a little sunshine and gentle exercise.

Posted by Justyce Allison – How to make a healthy/super healthy/boosty smoothie

Wake, smoothie, move, repeat. Wake, smoothie, move, repeat.

Green juices or smoothies have become part of everyday vernacular, almost as ubiquitous as a daily caffeine hit, among the health conscious anyway. But despite nutritious smoothies being a buzzword for years now (green smoothie is one of the biggest “trending” words in 2015), its widespread fame hasn’t changed the fact it’s rare for daily greens to be well executed.

And, here’s the clincher, because of this, it actually has little or none of the desired effects on your health and energy.

GREEN BENEFITS

It’s touted as your daily equaliser, an input of nutrient dense and enzyme-rich liquid that can help make you feel great and perhaps help you look it too. It has the potential to deliver easily accessible nutrition to your system and can help you detoxify. If your health is in “credit”, then a green smoothie/juice can further create a bit of a buffer to nutritional and life stresses.

While the idea of grabbing a pre-mixed or pre-powdered greens together with a new, trendy milk or “mylk”, appears to be an efficient way of throwing in the good stuff while getting optimum benefits, the truth is it probably isn’t. There are improvements to be made, and lots of them.

GREEN SMOOTHIE MISTAKES

1. Using pre-mixed, pre-powdered greens and berries

There are an abundance of these fruits and vegetables in their fresh and whole form, with all their intact enzymes and catalysts at your local growers market. A minimal amount of dead, dried, pesticide and chemical farmed green powder is not of any benefit to anyone. Always go fresh when you can.

2. Using low-grade protein powder

Putting awesome fresh produce in your shake and then degrading it by adding a low-grade protein source is not the best way to go.

You’re potentially adding a whole bunch of hidden fillers, inflammatory agents or chemicals to what is supposed to be our remedy against these things! Look out for ingredients like colourings, preservatives and a list of inactive ingredients longer than the active ingredients.

3. Check your superfood blend

Adding superfood blends that only contain micro-doses of the superfoods that you were after is commonplace. Have you considered how much you are going to actually need of that exotic sounding “superfood”?

Some brands contain only contain one tenth or one hundredth of the star ingredient they are promoting, which will do little for your health, even though they are listed on the label and are a selling point for the product.

4. What’s your pre-made blend made of?

Using pre-made blends that have added ingredients for texture, consistency and shelf life need to be scrutinised closely.

Ingredients to avoid are inactive ingredients – they’re inactive because they haven’t been added for use in the nutritional content of the product, but are still put in the product, which means your body still has to process and deal with it.

While some natural sweeteners are OK, again without sourcing them yourself you have little control over their quality. Other sweeteners are flat out terrible for your system – high fructose corn syrup and maltodextrin are the big ones to look out for so avoid these at all costs.

GREEN SMOOTHIES COME GOOD

The main point is, we need to start questioning all ingredients. It doesn’t help anyone if the “healthy” ingredients are produced in an unhealthy way, with unhealthy fillers. The benefits and assurance of using some home ingredients like a quality honey, or some well sourced stevia are more beneficial and harmonious to your body.

The other thing to look out for is food derived from a wholefood.

Most of the beneficial elements, such as vitamins and minerals, found in wholefoods are only used by the body when consumed with the rest of the wholefood. A wholefood contains the needed catalysts and enzymes to help you break down and make use of the nutrients you need to get out of those healthy foods. Nature has already got a great system set up for us and unfortunately separating and prepackaging parts of the wholefood, or synthetically trying to recreate elements of it doesn’t necessarily work.

Yes, it’s a smoothie ingredient minefield out there!

HOW TO MAKE THE BEST GREEN SMOOTHIE POSSIBLE

1. Buy fresh, quality produce

Preferably from local markets or growers. This way you know (because you can ask) where your fruit and veg has been, how long it has (or hasn’t) been in storage and what sort of conditions it has been grown in. Go chemical-free, organic, and sustainably grown produce. Buy lots of it and buy variety.

We recommend a variety of colours and particular qualities (for example, avocado for fat, banana for potassium, etc). Mix it up, too; the number of documented benefits to a wide variety of fruit and veg is only made to look dull by the potentials, uses and benefits we haven’t discovered yet.

2. Pick a suspension fluid

All of the produce will be blended into oblivion so you’ll need something liquid to carry them for texture and enjoyment’s sake (even if you are about your hardcore health there’s nothing wrong with having a health dense and tasty smoothie). Try home-made nut milks, hemp milk or coconut water.

3. Pick the right protein

If you are going to add a protein source, or a powder, do your research. Know your products. Do they use proprietary blends? Then guess what – it’s impossible to know what the hidden ingredients are. Are they transparent with the sourcing of their ingredients? If not, why not? Are they traceable sources? There are companies out there making the effort to nail these crucial factors in the products they deliver. It’s worth finding them and using them.

4. Get yourself an easy to clean, simple blender

You will make the money back on the cash you don’t spend on pre-packed, potentially low quality juices, and you will hit more variety and therefore more nutrition!

Red Hippo, run by Nick Dawe and Mitch and Ryan Barraclough, is an Australian company that provides synergistic protein blends, supported by science, and road tested by Olympians.